The Dogon took up their way of life centuries ago, driven by the Fulani and other warrior tribes to
these inhospitable but defensible heights that had earlier sheltered a little-known people called
the Tellem. Here, secluded from the outside world, the Dogon nurtured their complex social order,
based in almost every detail on elaborate religious precepts and beliefs. They also developed
the arts of sculpture and dance, permeated with symbolism that still intrigues anthropologists.
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